Rangers One Win Away From World Series

Holy crap, we didn't see this one coming. In the franchise's 50th season, the Texas Rangers are just one win away from playing in their very first World Series.

A.J. Burnett did alright in his New York Yankees' Game 4 loss that has the Rangers leading the series 3-1. In fact, he says:

Believe it or not, it’s probably the best I’ve pitched in a long time. It’s one mistake. It was down and away. It just didn’t go where I wanted it to go. I knew he hit it out.

I don't know, five runs on six hits with three walks seems like more than one mistake to me. The instance he may be referring to came after he intentionally walked David Murphy with two out in the sixth before Bengie Molina crushed one to put the Rangers up 5-3. Said Molina of the bomb:

It’s not bad for a fat kid that everyone makes fun of when he runs.

Hey, you said it pal. Josh Hamilton added two solo shots -- his fourth in four games -- and Nelson Cruz also went deep in the 10-3 victory.

Tommy Hunter lasted just into the fourth inning for the Rangers after allowing three runs on five hits, including a Robinson Cano solo shot in the bottom of the second, and an RBI single by Curtis Granderson in the third before a fielder's choice to Brett Gardner scored the Yankees third and final run in the fourth.

The Rangers bullpen stopped the bleeding though with 5.2 excellent innings of relief while the bats took care of business.

Texas is batting an incredible .307 at a team while New York is barely hanging on at .198, including a poor 6-for-39 with runners in scoring position. Against his former team, Alex Rodriguez is just 2-for-15, though he's driven in two runs.

Another alarming stat: the Rangers' bullpen has a solid 2.75 ERA in the series while the Yankees' relief corps are at a sky-high 7.07 ERA. That's not going to get things done in the Bronx.

New York experienced a tougher loss than the game Tuesday night however, as their All-Star first baseman limped off the field in the fifth inning. Sadly, Mark Teixeira exited with a strained right hamstring and is done for the year, to be replaced on the roster by infielder Eduardo Nunez while Fat Elvis gets the start at first base.

The Rangers are now an impressive 5-0 on the road in the playoffs this season, kicking the Yankees to the verge of losing three straight postseason home games for the first time since 1942.

Not so fast though, they still have to get past CC Sabathia in their rematch of Game 1 starters with C.J. Wilson on the hill for the Rangers. Oh that's right, Captain Cheeseburger lasted four innings and surrendered five runs on six hits with four walks in Game 1 while Wilson at least went all seven.

Game 5 at Yankee Stadium will take place tonight at 4:07pm ET on TBS. Hands off the baseball this time, Yankees fans in the front row!

Fun fact: Ever since the League Championship Series went to a best-of-seven format, 24 of the 30 previous teams to take 3-1 series lead have gone on to win the pennant.

[ESPN]